Burner lighter



April 24, 1945.

F. R. HIGLEY' BURNER LIGHTER Filed Aug. 24, 1940 INV ENT 0R.

ATTORNEYS 'Paienied Apr. 24, i945 ric BURNER LIGHTER Frank nl Higley, cleveland Heights, ohio. assignor to The Bryant Heater Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application August 2.4, l1940, Serial No. 354,062

Y Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in' burner lighters, that is to say means for automatically lighting burners when the gas supply `is turned on and embodying the safety feature of preventing the supply of gas to the burner when a pilot flame for igniting the gas fails to burn for any reason. The invention finds an important use in range lighters of the general character illustrated and described in ,my copending application Serial No. 354,061, led of even date herewith, now Patent No. 2,300,156 of October 2'?, 1942.

One of the objects of the invention is the provision of a thermal unit to be associated with the pilot for a gas burner which shall be convenient and easy to install and shall be readily adaptable to ranges of diierent design and manufacture. f

Another object is the provision of a thermal unit which shall be simple and compact and oi?y relatively low cost.

Still another object is the provision of a novel valve for actuation by the thermal unit for the purpose of controlling the operation of an automatic gas valve in the line of supply to the main burner.

A further object is the provision of a slide valve and a thermal member for operating the same so heated by the pilot flame and-the ambient heat from the burner that the valve piece moves in a closed path bringing about a scouring and polishing operation between the meeting faces of the valve and valve piece, the connection between the valve piece and the thermal member being such as to induce small increments of rotational as distinguished from back and forth oscillatory movement of the valve piece in addition toits motion of translation in a closed path.

Other objects and features of novelty will appear as VI proceed with the description of that embodiment of theinvention which, for the pur.- poses of the present application, 1 have illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of my new thermal unit;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same.

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

Figs. 4 and 5 are cross-sectional views taken substantially on the lines ll-t and 5 5 of Fig, 1.

Fig. 6 is a sectional plan view taken substantially on the line @-t of Fig. 5, and

Fig. FI is a diagrammatic `view indicating the translatory motion of the valve piece.

` In the drawing i0 represents one corner of a gas burner such as is used commonly in baking or broiling ovens. Such a. burner may be provided with a boss into which may be threaded a screw il, see Figs. 1 and 3, that is of a size to be received somewhat loosely within a hole I2 in a bracket i3 constituting part of my unit. By this means the unit is supported at its inner end.

'llhe unit comprises two elongated members I4 and iti with different coefficients of expansion, connected together near their inner ends. While it would be possible to construct the unit of a single member bent upon itself to provide upper and lower legs, such a. construction would not function as effectively as the two-metal unit herein disclosed for reasons which will appear hereinafter,

As herein illustrated the member i4 is an in- 'verted channel and is constructed oi' a metal having a relatively low coefcient of expansion. Member i5 is `dat and has a relatively high coeilcient of expansion.A The two members are spaced from each other by a foot portion of bracket i3, and are secured together by rivets i6 and il' which pass through the bracket foot as well as through the two members i4 and l5.

Member it has a slot i8 punched therein and below this slot are located smalll perforations i9 in a pilot 20, and the ames from these perforations are adapted to pass through the slot without appreciably heating the member i6. A gas outlet 2i of larger size supplies the flame which ignites the main burner. This outlet is connected by a narrow slot 22 with' anend opening 23 which discharges a stream of gas that iiows over and to some extent through an electric igniter which, in the form herein illustrated, consists of a heating coil 2d mounted in a groove of a refractory block E5 that is attached to the member it by meanswoi a bolt 26 or the like. Current for this coil may be supplied through a pair of ribbon conductors 2l which are insulated preferably by a series of refractory beads 28.

Pilot 20 is fitted into one of the angles of the channel, as shown particularly in Fig. e, being held in place by a small angle bar 29, one arm `of which is welded to the pilot 20 while the other arm is fastened to the'web of the channel by suitable means, such as screws 30. The angle 29 furthermore constitutes a central rib for the channel and accordingly has the further function of reinforcing member i4 and counteracting distortion thereof.

In an intermediate portion of member i5 I form a series of holes 3| which rather effectively block the transmission of heat from one side of -the member to the other. By this means an intermediate zone of small mean mass is provided in the thermal member -I5 with zones of larger mass on opposite sides thereof. One of the latter zones is located directly above the burner openings I9, so that it takes heat directly from the pilot when the latter is ignited. The surface area of the other zone 4of larger mass is increased by a series of serrations 32 in order that such heat as may be transmitted from the hot side ofthe member through the intermediate small mass zone will be dissipated the more quickly. As will be obvious, when the pilot flames play upon one side of this thermal member that side expands and causes the member to deect, thereby imparting transverse movement to the free end cf that member for effecting valve actuation.

The valve to be operated by the thermal unit in this case comprises a. valve body 35 carried by the member I4 and a valve piece 36 adapted to slide over the face of the valve body in response tomovements of the actuating member I5. As illustrated herein the valve body includes a cylindrical trunk which is projected through a round opening in the member I4, and a flat head which rests upon the top of that member and to which it is secured by va pair of screws 31. that extend through holes in the web part of the channel into threaded holes in the head portion of the valve body. 'I'he valve body may be ported in various ways, as the requirements of different inst-allations may necessitate. In the case illustrated there are two ports 38 and 39 to which are connected tubular conductors 40 and 4I respectively and a third port 42 which communicates with atmosphere. Connections for the conductors 40 and 4I to eect control of an automatic gas valve are illustrated and described in my aforesaid copending application to which reference may be had for one example of a system in which the present invention may be utilized.

` The valve piece 36 as previously stated is adapt- In a different position, that is when the member I5 is deflected by heat from the pilot, the pocket 43 bridges ports 38 and 42 and closes ofi port 39. r

I n order that the opening of the ports 39 and 42 may be more rapid I cut small slots 44 and 45 l into the valve body on the inner sides thereof and in communication with ports 39 and 42 respectively. Valve piece 36 is a round disk which ts with some clearance into a round hole in the thermal actuating member I5, the edges of this hole being made thin, as illustrated in Fig. 5, so that any warping or other deformation of the thermal member will not cause the valve' piece or slide to be locked thereinv and hence prevented from resting upon and closely engaging the surface of the valve body.

In order that this close'engagement may be maintained at all times I provide means for exerting a force downward upon the valve piece opposite the port or pocket 43 therein. I exert this force preferably by means of a weight 46 with a small rounded boss -4'I at the center of its lower side. This weight is confined by a sheet metal cap or cover 48 that is secured in any suitable manner to the fiat head of the valve body 35. This cover is generally cylindrical and has a cut-out 49 through which the member I5 extends with suillcient side clearance to accommodate the swing of that member. The cover does not tightly engage the sides of the weight, but the clearance is small enough so that there can be very little lateral movement of the weight.

The outer end of the unit is supported more or less loosely from one wall of the oven or other closed compartment in which the burner Ill is located. This is essential in that compensation must be provided for a. considerable amount of expansion and contraction oi the parts. In the drawing I have indicated by the lines 'I0 and 1I a double wall such as is frequently used for ovens, the valve parts and the tubular conductors 20, 40 and 4I being then enclosed within the wall. Incidentally however either one of the wall members I0 and Il may be omitted, that is to say the lvalve and associatedparts may be entirely within the oven where they are exposed to oven heat, or they may be outside the oven and thus in a cooler spot. The loose support above referred to may be a bracket l2 with its vertical leg secured to the oven wall, its horizontal leg having an opening 'I3 therethrough which loosely receives the tubular conductors and the vertical part of pilot 20.

The thermal members I4 and I5 are made of uniform length for installation in ranges of different design. If it is inconvenient in a given case to arrange the unit to project from an oven wall at right angles thereto, it may be set at any other angle necessary to bring the pilot ame into the desired position with respect to the oven burner. The unit may therefore accommodate itself to different ovens in which the distances between the burner and the wall vary between wide limits.

Operation.-When gas is turned into the pilot tube and the coil 24 is energized, as by a manual control consisting of a gas -valve and electric switch operated simultaneously, the coil ignites the gas emerging from the pilot opening 23, and the pilot flame travels back through slot 22 to opening 2 I, which causes the gas from each of the small openings I9 to be ignited in sequence. One side of the thermal member I5 therefore -gets hot quickly and the other side of that member remains comparatively cool, with the result that valve piece 36 is slid over the surface of valve body 35 away from the position illustrated in Fig. 5 to a position in which pocket 43 connects the valve ports 38 and 42. This functions by suitable means, as for example that disclosed in my aforesaid copending application, to turn on the gas to main burner I0, which is ignited by the ame from opening 2l. 'I'he pilot continues to burn at all outlets, but generally the igniter coil will be extinguished automatically by means which form no part of the present invention. Now when the operator wishes to discontinue the operation of ber I5 is due to the uneven heating of the massesVV of that member on opposite sides of its intermediate low mass zone. This deflection may besaid to take place in the plane of the member. Owing to the length of the member the deection effect is multiplied and a motion of substantial amount results. There is also a relative motion of the valve piece and body due to relative expansion of the thermal members I4 and I5 longitudinally under the iniluence of ambient heat from the main burner. If the two members I4 and I5 were formed of the same metal this motion' would be practically nil, since the ambient heat aecting the two members is the same. The only longitudinal motion in that event would be that due to the somewhat greater expansion of the member I5 on account of pilot llame heat being added to ambient heat in the case of that member alone.

However one of the features of my invention rei qulres movement of the valve piece longitudinally as well as transversely, and consequently I use metals of different coefllcients of expansion for the two members I4 andV I5. Conveniently the member I5 is the high expansion member and the member It is the low expansion member. With the construction described there is a transverse motion back and forth when the pilot flame cornes Y which is brought to bear upon that member to one side of the openings 3| by the llames from ports lib must raise the temperature of that side of the member materially above 1200 F. Such high temperature necessarily sets up heavy internal strains. 'I'he member i5 is correspondingly weakened when this occurs.

Creep in the metal of the thermally responsive member is a function of the temperature, the time and the load. An oven may be in use for hours at a time and the pilot flame must be on all of that time. The temperature factor and the` time factor are of course fixed by the requirements of the job. The load factor depends upon the valve and its operating mechanism. Applicants slide valve of course presents a slight load due to friction between the valve and its seat, but the load is present only during motion of the valve at the beginning and end of the oven operation. During the great majority of the time there is no load on the operating member. The valve is operated in both directions positively by the thermally responsive member, instead of hav-v ing Vto work against the opposition of a spring. This is in contradistinction to all previous arrangements cf this character, where the valve operator Works in one direction against a spring and therefore is subject to load throughout the operation of the oven, the spring shifting the ,valve to the opposite position when the pilot and consequently the main burner go oi. The fact is that a spring in a hot spot is not permissible', as the best springs fail at temperatures far below oven heat. Of course the spring in Such 8' CaSe may be located at a distance from the pilot in a relatively cool spot, but in that event there must ation of the burner. Now, when the main burner and the pilot burner are extinguished, simultaneously or otherwise, the point C returns toits original position along a path somewhat as indicated by the line 63. Point C therefore moves through a closed path in the cycle of the apparatus. The resulting movement of the valve piece partakes of the nature of a scouring movement. If any minute particles oi foreign matter collect between the faces of the valve body and valve piece this scouring motion prevents the travel of such particles baci: and forth in a line and therefore tends to prevent scratches in the mirror iinish of the valve surfaces.

This closed path motion has the further effect of producing a rotation of the valve piece by small increments, as distinguished from back and forth or oscillatory increments. As previously stated the opening in member l5 is somewhat larger than the periphery of the valve piece. The engagement of the inner edge of this opening with the circular valve piece occurs at a different point for each oi the movements of the valve piece charted in Fig. 7, and these changes in point of engagement progress around the valve. As a result the valve piece rotates in the direction oppol. In apparatus of the classdescribed, o, valve body, a thermal member adapted to move over the surface of said valve body in response to tern,- perature changes, said thermal member having a circular opening therethrough with a thin inner edge, and a, circular slide valve loosely disposed within. said opening for sliding engagement with said valve body.

2. Valve means including a valve body having a port in one surface thereof, a valve piece cooperating with said valve body to open and close said port, and actuating means for moving said valve piece with respect to said valve body, said valve piece and said actuating means having interengageable parts for the purpose. on-e loosely disposed about the other, said actuating means having progressive motion in a closed path with opposite components of said motion serving to open and close the valve, whereby the bodily motion of the valve piece will be accompanied by progressive rotative impulses in the same directiOn.

be a long transmission connection, whereas .the

construction of the present invention is compact and self-contained.

In Fig. 'l I have illustrated diagrammatically what occurs with respect to translatory motion of the valve piece. Let @Il represent the center line of member I5 and C the center of the circular opening in its free end. Now, when the pilot comes on and rapidly heats one large mass zone of member l5, that member defiects, moving point C over to the position marked 6I. Gas to the burner then comes on and is ignited and ambient heat in the compartment is gradually built up,

3. Valve means including a valve body having a port in one surface thereoi, a circular valve piece movable upon said body to open and close said port, and means for moving said valve piece comprising a ring loosely surrounding the valve piece, said ring having progressive motion in a Vclosed path with opposite components of said motion serving to open and close the valve, whereby the bodily motion of the valve piece is accompanied by progressive rotative impulses in the same direction. 1

4. Slide valve means including a valve body having a port in one surface thereof, a circular valve piece having a dat surface slidable upon the valve body to open and close said port, and means for sliding said valve piece comprising a ring loosely surrounding the valve piece, said ring having progressive motion in a c losed path with opposite components of said motion serving to open and close the valve, whereby the bodily movement of the valve piece is accompanied by progressive rotative impulses in the same direc-- tion.

5. In `apparatus of the character described, valve means comprising a valve body and a valve piece movable thereupon, means for operating said valve piece comprising an elongate thermally responsive member anchored at one end and adapted when one edge is heated to swing laterally and expand longitudinally and when cooled to return to its original position, said valve piece and said thermally responsive member having interengageable parts-one loosely disposed about the other, whereby during a cycle of heating and cooling the thermally responsive member there will be imparted to the valve piece progressive motion in a closed path, opposite components of said motion servingto open land close the valve, and all components serving to impart to the valve piece progressive rotative impulses in the same direction.

6. In apparatus of the character described;

valve means comprising a valve body and a circular valve piece movable thereupon, means for operating said valve piece -comprising an elongate thermally responsive member anchored at one end and having a ring at its free end loosely surrounding said valve piece, whereby when one edge of the thermally responsive member is heated it will swing laterally and then expand longitudinally and when the thermally responsive member is cooled it will return to its original position, and

whereby during such cycle of movements of the thermally responsive member said ring will impartto said valve piece progressive motion in a closed path, opposite components of said motion serving to open and close the valve and all com- A ponents serving to impart to the valve piece progressive rotative impulses in the same direction.

7. In apparatus of the character described, valve means comprising a valve body having a port in one surface thereof, a circular valve piece slidable over said surface to open and close said port, means for moving said valve piece comprising an elongate thermally responsive member anchored at oneend and having a ring at its free end loosely surrounding said valve piece, whereby when one edge of the thermally responsive member is heated it will swing laterally and then expand longitudinally and when the thermally responsive member is cooled it will return to its original position, and whereby during said cycle of movements of the thermally responsive member said ring will impart to said valve piece progressive motion in a closed path, opposite components of said motion serving to open and close the valve and all components serving to impart to the valve piece progressive rotative impulses in the saine direction.

8. Valve means including a valve body having a port in one surface thereof, a valve piece movable over said surface to open and close said port, means for actuating said valve piece with translatory and rotational movement, pressure exerting means arranged to be applied to said valve piece on the side remote from the valve body with substantially point contact in line with the center of the valve body for maintaining bearing of the valve piece upon the valve body.

9, Valve means including a valve body having a port in its upper surface, a valve piece above said valve body adapted to open and close said port, means for actuating said valve piece with translatory and rotational movement, weight means arranged to be applied to said valve piece on the side remote from the valve body with substantially point contact in line with the center of the valve body for maintaining bearing of the valve piece upon the valve body.

10. Apparatus of the class described for control of a burner by pilot means therefor, said apparatus comprising slide valve means including cooperating relatively ported valve piece and valve body parts, and thermally responsive means for actuating said valve means comprising a pair of elongated members alongside each other and interconnected at one end, each operatively connected at the other end with one of said valve parts and having different coefficients of expansion, one of said members having an opening therethrough intermediate its side edges to obstruct the transmission from one side thereof to the other of heat, whereby a diierence in temperature as between said side edges will produce relative movement of said valve piece and valve body parts transversely of said members and changes -in ambient temperature will produce relative movement of said parts longitudinally of said members.

11. Valve means including a valve body having said valve piece comprising two members one loosely surrounding the other, said actuating means having motion in a closed path, whereby the point of bearing between said two membersy progresses through 360 for each cycle 0f movements of the actuator through said closed path.

12. Valve means including a valve body having a port in one surface thereof, a circular valve piece cooperating with said valve body to open and close saidv port, and actuating means for moving said valve piece with respect to said valve body comprising a ring loosely surrounding the valve piece, said actuating means having motion in a closed path, whereby the point of bearing between the ring and the valve ,piece progresses rotatively to cause the valve piece to turn inthe opposite direction through small increments.

13. Slide valve means comprising a fixed ported valve body with a smooth upper surface and a valve piece slidably disposed thereupon in operative relation therewith, means for actuating said valve piece with translatory and rotational movement on said valve body, a weight arranged to bear upon the valve piece with contact limited to a location opposite the ported area of the valve body and substantially central of said valve Piece, and means arranged to enclose said weight and limit its motion for substantially maintaining said contact location.

14. In a pilot of the character described, slide valve means comprising a body having a ported external face and a valve element slidable across said face to control flow through said valve means,

burner means, a thermally responsive member for member is relieved of external stress from said` said valve from one position to the othex-,aaid

actuator and valve huving4 cooperating parte for causing said-actuator to enlace the valve on opposite sides oi the path of travell of the center ot the valve during opposite portions oi the actuator cycle.. whereby rotational impulses in the, 5 xsame direction are imparted to the valve during its opening and closing movements.

` FRANK R. HIGLEY. 

